Ecological Status of some Floodplain Lakes with in Jhelum River Basin, Kashmir

The paper analyses attribute of plankton communities and macrophytes along with environmental variables of five floodplain lakes within Jhelum River basin, during various seasons of the year 2005-2006. The Bacillariophyceae dominated Chlorophyceae and Cyanophyceae in all the lakes whereas zooplankton communities were predominated by rotifers except for the deepest lake Manasbal, where copepods were the dominant group. A close association of Ceratophyllum- Myriophyllum and less frequently with Nymphoides was observed in all the lakes. The waters of all the studied lakes were alkaline and well buffered. The high content of chloride is indicative of presence of organic matter while progressive increase in nitrogen and phosphorus in all the lakes could be attributed to anthropogenic pressure and sewage contamination. The chemical parameters in all the lakes are on higher side when compared to earlier records.